With the Austrian Empire's strength at this point, barring any unexpected setbacks, it could certainly encircle the Bellevue Legion and starve it to death. But that might take one or two years.
Franz didn't have that much time to waste on them, and he didn't actually want to wipe the Sardinians off the face of the earth.
So Franz decided he ought to give them a hand. Organizing guerrilla forces to blow things apart from within was undoubtedly the best option now.
Garibaldi and Ribeiro were among the first to join the Volunteer Army. It wasn't just because they were Italian nationalists; they also wanted to see with their own eyes what was happening in Piedmont.
The Austrian Empire's propaganda department was still being a little too presumptuous. Although Franz had replaced almost all of the old staff, their methods and messaging remained stale.
It was nothing more than: the French were disrupting the world's established order, going against the faith we shared, and threatening our country and our way of life.
Franz was speechless at such hollow propaganda. He might as well have let a bunch of tabloid reporters write it.
What Franz hadn't expected was that such empty words could still strike a chord with so many people. On the first day, the number of Volunteer Army applicants exceeded what they actually needed.
After all, these were raids behind enemy lines, not pitched battles. Too many people would only make them easier to spot and harder to move around.
The Volunteer Army's first priority was to stay alive. As the official statement put it: "As long as we're still here, the French won't dare act rashly. So please, everyone, cherish your lives. That way, we can save more people."
Next, they were to liberate as many villages and